St. Mary's Church, Gressenhall St. Mary's Church, Gressenhall. Photo: Jurek and Trish Sienkiewicz / Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Open the interactive map → Map of NCN 13 - London to Maldon

Official route · Sustrans

NCN 13 - London to Maldon

179.4 km 1077 m climbing About 2 days 9% off road Road cycling East of England

The route runs south from Fakenham through the low Norfolk countryside to Thetford, where the land flattens further into the Breckland.

Most of the distance is on road. From Thetford you cross into Suffolk, passing through Sapiston, Troston and Great Livermere before the line gathers the settlements around Bury St Edmunds at Moreton Hall. South of Cockfield the route works through Essex, reaching the Colne valley at Bures before the final run through Fordham, Eight Ash Green and Stanway.

The figures

Distance179.4 km
Climbing1077 m
Off road16 km, about 9% of the route
Riding timeabout 10 hours, roughly 2 days at a moderate pace
RegionEast of England
Route fromSustrans

Worth knowing before you go

The stretch between Stonebridge and Thetford is the longest gap between settlements, so carry water and food from Thetford before heading north or after leaving it southbound. Merton, Riddlesworth and Knettishall see little through traffic and have no obvious resupply. Long Melford is the last substantial settlement before the route closes out in Essex.

Put your own dates on this and TourTrax splits it into days at your pace, finds somewhere to sleep at the end of each one, estimates what it will cost and gets you to the start without flying.

Plan this route → Download the GPX

Other route guides

NCN 13 - London to Maldon is an official route from Sustrans (their website).